Space Capsule with 3 Astronauts Blasts Off to Orbiting Lab

Italian astronaut Paolo Nespoli, member of the main crew of the expedition to the International Space Station (ISS), gestures prior the launch of Soyuz MS-05 space ship at the Russian leased Baikonur cosmodrome, Kazakhstan, Friday, July 28, 2017. (AP Photo/Sergei Ilnitsky, Pool), photo: AP/Sergei Ilnitsky, Pool

BAIKONUR – A Soyuz space capsule successfully blasted off for the International Space Station on Friday, carrying a U.S. astronaut, a Russian cosmonaut and an Italian astronaut.NASA's Randy Bresnik, Russia's Sergei Ryazansky and Italy's Paolo Nespoli lifted off from the Russia-leased launch pad in Kazakhstan shortly after sunset at 21:41 p.m. on Friday (1541 GMT, 11:41 a.m. EDT). They will travel six hours before docking at the space station.The three will join NASA's Jack Fischer and Peggy Whitson as well as the veteran Russian cosmonaut Fyodor Yurchikhin.

Bresnik previously logged 10 days in space when he flew on a mission in 2009, performing two spacewalks. Russia's Ryazansky is the crew's most experience astronaut with 160 days in space under his belt.The incoming crew will contribute to more than 250 experiments conducted at the orbiting lab in fields such as biology, human research, physical sciences and technology development.Flight Engineer Whitson earlier this week was doing research for a cancer study that may help develop more effective treatments for cancer patients, NASA reported.